Maoists kill 5 Jharkhand policemen in ambush

GUMLA: Five policemen were killed and one was injured in a Maoist ambush on a patrolling jeep at Chainpur block headquarters, 50km from the district town of Gumla, on Thursday. The rebels, who attacked the patrolling party on a crowded weekly bazaar day, seized three Insas rifles from the dead officers but left their bag with two hand-grenades before fleeing.

According to reports, a police jeep with six policemen (including the driver) was returning from a crowded bus stand, some 400 yards from Chainpur police station, at about noon when a group of 15 to 20 Maoists dressed as civilians opened fire with their AK-47s. Additional forces arrived from the police station during the 15-minute encounter and three Maoists received bullet injuries, said police inspector T N Singh, adding that the rebels escaped towards Hukra.

The slain policemen, were identified as Jharkhand Armed Police (JAP)'s hawaldar Bhola Kumar Singh from Chhapra in Bihar, constables Dilip Bediya (Ranchi), Ramnarayan Ram (Garhwa) and Chhote Lal Murmu (Godda) and ASI Gopal Prasad from the district armed police (DAP). Raman Tirkey, the DAP driver of the patrol jeep, sustained injuries in the ambush. and Bediya died on the spot while Ram and Murmu succumbed to their injuries at the community health centre at Chainpur block headquarters. Prasad died at Apollo Hospital in Ranchi, where he was taken for treatment, said Singh.

Police officers and security forces from the district headquarters reached the spot about four hours later. DGP Rajiv Kumar and other top officials also arrived the spot to assess the situation.